I’m Behind in My Child Support. – Allen

I’m behind in my child support and my paychecks have been being garnished for about 6 weeks.

Two questions; If they are taking out more than the allowable guidelines, where do I go to get it corrected? Second, Can more the one job be garnished?

Allen”

Dear Allen,

First, let me say that child support has to be one of the most important debts to focus on. Your obligation can’t be discharged with bankruptcy and if you don’t pay you might win a free trip, as many have, to the county jail. Seriously, jail. They will lock your ass up.

The whole issue of child support payments is a mess. On one hand some father’s try to ditch paying their child support. in addition, some mom’s use the child support for their own gain and not actually for supporting the kids. Then some father’s have had to live on what was left over. In the case of my friend, he has had 55% of his check garnished for the last 16 years.

The determination of how much you will need to pay will be dictated by the laws of your state. You can speak to the agency in your state that handles such issues and discuss the payment calculation with them. To get a payment modified usually requires a day off work and a trip to court as well.

I’m not certain about the second job garnishment question but it really does not matter. The last thing you want to do is try to hide income from the court. Just tell the child support agency how much you are making and deal with the results. I know that’s easy for me to say but trust me, when it comes to the bad things that can happen when you don’t make your child support payment, the list ain’t pretty.